This invention relates generally to revolving fire-arms characterized by a many chambered cylinder that revolves to bring its chambers successively in alignment with the fire-arm barrel and firing mechanism. More particularly, this invention relates to a revolver-type firearm or handgun loadable with an elevated number of cartridges because the invention features the provision of two cartridge-carrying cylinders. The dual cylinder revolver of the present invention advantageously enables the revolver to be loaded with two different kinds of ammunition, for example, with one cylinder carrying regular bullets while the other cylinder holds non-lethal ammunition such as stun pellets, tranquilizer shells, etc., so that, for example, a law enforcement agent has the option to fire either disabling ammunition or lethal ammunition. The different cylinders carrying different ammunition types can be distinguished by, for example, different color markings and/or different exterior surface contours. Thus, the present invention beneficially provides more firing capacity than a conventional, single cylinder revolver, while also allowing two different cartridge types to be loaded, each into a distinctive cylinder, thereby avoiding the confusion which would be associated with loading different cartridge types into the same cylinder.
Conventionally, revolver-type firearms generally have a single cylinder accommodating a limited number of cartridges, usually between five and nine, in respective chambers. Over the years, a number of attempts have been made to provide a handgun with expanded firing capacity. One general past approach to increasing the cartridge capacity of a handgun was to provide an enlarged or unconventional cylinder capable of holding more bullets. Exemplary of past revolving firearms having a revolving cylinder with an increased number of chambers are U.S. Pat. Nos. 217,218; 524,743; 1,898,237; and 4,468,876. In general, prior firearms that employ an enlarged cylinder or a cylinder otherwise adapted to carry more than the conventional number (between 5-9 inclusive) of cartridges are less than ideal. For example, an enlarged cylinder, when utilized in prior handguns, was often found to disadvantageously cause the distribution of handgun mass to be unbalanced, thereby undesirably giving rise to objectionable kicks when the gun is fired.
Another previous approach to increase the firing capacity of revolving type firearms involved providing a plurality of coaxially mounted cartridge holders. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 142,175 and 148,742 each illustrate multiple cartridge-carrying cylinders arranged in series along a common axis. Another variation o those prior firearms which can be characterized as having multiple coaxial cartridge holders involves a previous firearm type wherein two coaxial cartridge holders are embodied in a central cylinder encompassed by a coaxial, cartridge-holding outer ring that surrounds the central cylinder.
Yet another previous approach to enable a firearm to carry and fire an increased number of cartridges can be characterized as utilizing an "endless" chain of cartridge holders, or the functional equivalent thereof U.S. Pat. Nos. 52,248 and 1,169,121 although each different, illustrate firearms that provide increased firing capacity by embodying an "endless" chain of cartridge holders. It is worth noting that many of the prior attempts to provide a revolving firearm with increased firing capacity, by employing an increased number of cartridge holders or cylinders, are inventions from the 1800's or early 1900's. (Note most of the U.S. Patents cited above.) Such previous approaches have long since faded into the past, indicating that most prior firearms embodied to provide for extra firing capacity are less than ideal in design and/or functionality. A longstanding problem in the firearm art was to provide for an increase in the number of cartridges that could be carried and fired by the firearm.
Many felt this problem was adequately solved by the invention of the automatic firearm which can be loaded with an increased number of cartridges carried in a "clip" or "magazine". Typically, an automatic handgun will be loadable with a magazine that holds more cartridges (usually twelve) than a conventional six or nine shot revolver. However, automatic firearms also have problems associated therewith, and thus may not provide the ideal solution to the goal of increasing the firing capacity of a firearm. For example, a major problem with automatic firearms is their potential to "jam" such that their firing mechanism is locked in an inoperable state and unable to fire cartridges. The potential of automatic firearms to "jam" unfortunately renders such weapons as less than 100% reliable, thus undermining the confidence of law enforcement agents in many automatic firearms. Moreover, gun users claim that shooting the automatic firearm disadvantageously involves a more difficult firing procedure. Another drawback associated with automatic weapons is that the gun user cannot switch to a different type of ammunition (e.g. from stun cartridges to lethal, expanding bullets) without changing ammunition clips. The present invention advantageously allows two different types of ammunition to be readily available at all times, without requiring a reloading step.
The benefit of providing a firearm that can be loaded with two different types of ammunition should not be overlooked or underestimated. Many lives could be saved if law enforcement agents had non-lethal ammunition readily available as well as the lethal cartridges normally carried. In such a case, the non-lethal ammo, e.g. stun pellets, could be used to merely subdue a criminal who otherwise might have been seriously wounded if only regular ammunition was loaded in the law enforcer's weapon. Advantageously, the dual cylinder revolver of the present invention allows a first cylinder to be loaded with one ammunition type, while a second cylinder is loaded with a different type of ammo. The user of the dual cylinder revolver can quickly and easily switch from one cylinder to the other, thereby advantageously allowing for a change in the type of cartridge to be fired.
There exists, therefore, a significant need for a dual cylinder revolver which provides two different types of ammunition, if desired, and that provides for an increased number of available firable cartridges once both cylinders are fully loaded. Moreover, such a needed dual cylinder revolver should be reliable in operation, without being excessively mechanically complex. The present invention fulfills these needs and provides further related advantages.